Wall Street Blew It

Blame: Voters vs Wall Street

• Many argue “Wall Street didn’t blow it, voters did” – either ~half of actual voters, or a larger share of eligible citizens including nonvoters.
• Others insist the business/finance world failed too: they understood Econ 101 tariff risks, yet mounted no unified, forceful resistance or lobbying against Trump’s agenda.

Tariffs, Law, and Power

• Several comments stress that tariff power constitutionally resides with Congress, but has been delegated via emergency powers (IEEPA).
• A Supreme Court ruling made reversing presidential emergency tariffs harder, now requiring veto‑proof supermajorities.
• A recent House resolution redefining “calendar day” for the National Emergencies Act is described as effectively “stopping time,” blocking a prompt vote to terminate Trump’s emergency.
• Big disagreement over Democrats: some say they have “zero power” and can’t stop unilateral edicts; others say they’ve repeatedly failed to use hardball tactics when they did have leverage.

Economic Impact and Global Trust

• Broad consensus that tariffs act as a consumption tax, raising prices on imports and domestically produced goods that rely on foreign inputs (energy, fertilizer, components, minerals).
• Debate over incidence: one side says poor and blue‑collar households will be hit hardest; another claims key Asian exporters will “eat” tariffs or negotiate them away, limiting consumer pain.
• Several predict supply‑chain chaos as firms scramble to relocate production, producing both higher costs and shortages.
• Some compare COVID to tariffs: COVID was a shared external shock, while unilateral tariffs destroy trust in a rules‑based system. Damage to America’s credibility as a trading partner is seen as long‑lasting and hard to reverse.

Markets, Prediction, and Volatility

• Many note the market plunged immediately on tariff news and Chinese retaliation; some still see this as a correction from overvaluation (high Shiller CAPE, AI hype, prior low rates).
• Others highlight that hedge funds profit from volatility and that markets often react slowly to looming disasters (pandemic, recent AI shifts), undermining the idea of markets as flawless prediction engines.

Trump, Populism, and “Businessman” Governance

• Recurrent theme: Trump is doing exactly what he repeatedly said—mass tariffs, shrinking government—even if supporters insisted it was “just bluster” or “negotiation.”
• Commenters describe a pattern of rationalization that shifts from dismissal to full endorsement as policies bite.
• Many mock the “we need a businessman” myth, arguing his track record (bankruptcies, legal troubles) and the complexity of running an economy vs a firm make that premise absurd.